Common Name: Brazilian Red Hots Alternanthera

Colors: Pink Red Variegated

Who would have guessed this plant would become one of the most popular new plants for Florida gardeners? We get more requests for this plant and more reports of how well it performed than any other plant we grow. That is saying a lot. It really stands out and is so easy to grow. It has it’s best coloration in the full sun but can grow in partially shaded areas very well. 

The information below is from our searchable database. http://floridafriendlyplants.com/plant_database.asp

Optimal Light:
Sun
Mature Height:
2ft-3ft

Light Range:
Full/Part Sun
Mature Spread:
2ft-3ft

Soil Moisture:
Well-drained to Medium
Soil Texture:
Any

Salt Tolerance:
Med

Florida Native:
No
Florida Region:
C,S

Drought Tolerance:
High
Hardiness Zone:
9-11

Season of Color:
Year-round

Brazilian Red Hots - Alternanthera dentata 'Brazilian Red Hots', a Josephs Coat - grows 20 to 28 inches tall, and up to 18 inches wide and is trouble-free in full sun or partial shade. The bright foliage of this new favorite perennial for the Florida Friendly garden has been a welcome addition to garden designers. They stand tall in containers for sunny locations and make a great THRILLER component. Once established it is fairly drought tolerant. The color is most vibrant in full sun. Ball shaped white flowers stretch out above the foliage in mid winter. Cut these back as the days become longer in early spring for a vigorous flush of color. 1 Gallon Pots are available at most Home Depot garden centers today. Brazilian Red Hots is a great tall edging plant for your garden beds and is also available in the Warm Season in our Innovative SausEdge format for easy planting and an instant manicured look.

Check out the SausEdge video. You can 'slice your SausEdge' into smaller 'links' and stretch your dollars and get the same look and performance and more value. The hot pink and rose shades make these plants adaptable to use with cool or warm colors. They can be the 'THRILLER' in stunning and long lasting perennial combination containers mixed with Lantana, Pentas and many other sun loving annuals.

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Persian Shield – Strobilanthes dyerianus, is native to Myanmar and survives as a long lived easy to care for perennial in the right place in your garden. It is one of the Top 20 Florida Perennials and very suited to our subtropical climate and usually pest and problem free. It is nearly always available at Florida Home Depot Garden centers in the south and after freezing weather chances pass in north Florida. Not more than 3 hours of direct sun and less if you can fit it in a shady place. It likes Florida’s heat and humidity. Too much moisture and shade and it will stretch tall and tend to fall over in the heavy summer winds we get with afternoon storms. Pinch and the plant will stay full and bushy. To Pinch or Not to Pinch…

In South Florida, this Persian Shield barely noticed the few frosty nights. In central Florida, 80-90% of the tops were frozen and in North Florida I have not heard that so many survived this unusually cold winter.

Persian Shield is a dependable THRILLER component to containers designed to accent a shady part of your garden or patio.

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If you want to change your annuals in your containers with the season or change them with Easter Lilies and maybe hardy mums in the fall and poinsettias at Christmas try this method.

Reasons to use this method:

1. where you have container perennials and want to add seasonal annuals
2. where you have container perennials and want to add holiday poinsettias
3. where you have container perennials and don’t want disturb the root systems
4. where you have container perennials and want move them to a different location and change the color theme with a different annual
5. where you want to save time in refreshing your containers
6. where you want to add a tender annual before the last frost free date and have the option to lift and protect it
7. where you need the ability to experiment with color in the design

Here is the link to the earlier Pot-in-Pot for Container Gardening post with more images and ideas.

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Looking back at 2009’s Flower Festival helps us get more great ideas we can enjoy in our own gardens. Check out the Ornamental Sweet Potatoes used in this cleaver display as a pumpkin patch. 

This year we will have new Ornamental Sweet Potato varieties called “Bright Ideas”. They will be available with Lime (chartreuse), Black and Rusty Red foliage. Plant them in the spring or summer and then place your pumpkins in the foliage for a fall pumpkin patch display. They will be available in April at most Florida Home Depot garden centers.

Ornamental Sweet Potatoes make great container and hanging basket plants. They are a SPILLER element in combination planters. Use the colors to echo colors in flowers or as contrast elements to make them pop.

2010 will surely be a great year at EPCOT for the Flowers. They just get better every year. Penny and Kim are talking a lot about the upcoming EPCOT Flower and Garden Festival on their blog over at The Dirt and in the Getaway section of the Tampa Tribune next Sunday.

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Pamela Crawford's Water-Wise Garden in Georgia is going to be featured in a spring issue of Southern Living.

Pamela wrote several Florida books while living in south Florida. Here is a link to her special containers, videos, books and designs.

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Montrose is a Sponsored Project Garden of The Garden Conservancy. This garden exudes design, color and imagination. You can purchase unusual plants they feature on their open garden days. Near Chapel Hill, N C.

Getting there....

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